2014 will represent the first full year of decline for Apple iPad shipments, predicts IDC.
The firm expects the worldwide tablet market to see a massive deceleration in 2014, with year-over-year growth slowing to 7.2 per cent, down from 52.5 per cent in 2013.
IDC reports that both the iPad and the overall market slowdown do not come as a surprise as device lifecycles for tablets have continued to lengthen, increasingly resembling those of PCs more than smartphones.
"The tablet market continues to be impacted by a few major trends happening in relevant markets," said Ryan Reith, program director with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers.
"In the early stages of the tablet market, device lifecycles were expected to resemble those of smartphones, with replacement occurring every 2-3 years. What has played out instead is that many tablet owners are holding onto their devices for more than three years and in some instances more than four years. We believe the two major drivers for longer than expected tablet lifecycles are legacy software support for older products, especially within iOS, and the increased use of smartphones for a variety of computing tasks."
PCR recently reported that Apple iPad trade-ins have risen by 190.06 per cent since the announcement of the new iPad Air.

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